by Rachel Schreiber

The dictionary defines family as “parents and their children, considered as a group, whether dwelling together or not.” Yasir Kaskorkis, owner of Yoshi’s, would define family as his parents, brother, uncle, aunt, his employees and his customers. In fact, there isn’t anyone who steps through the doors of Yoshi’s who Yasir doesn’t consider family.

“My dad and I are at Yoshi’s 9 to 9, or sometimes 9 to12 this is our baby. We’re raising a baby. We want to raise this child and know it’s capable of running on its own. My dad, my uncle and I make sure everything here is done right and it grows the right way. We have our systems in place and now we have to build on it,” he says. Yasir’s mother and his aunt work part time.

Yasir was born in Royal Oak and attended school in Southfield. He earned a bachelor’s degree at Wayne State University in business management and an MBA at Walsh College. His family has owned numerous businesses. To understand the restaurant genre, Yasir trained at his cousin’s restaurant in Southfield before opening Yoshi’s. It only seemed right to name the restaurant Yoshi’s, Yasir’s childhood nickname.

Yasir says, “We have authentic Middle Eastern recipes, like our falafel. None of our food comes from a can. We pickle our own vegetables.” Yasir’s philosophy of owning a restaurant is not just serving food; it’s much deeper. He ensures his customers feel like family. He explains, “Our customers are treated likes guests in our home. People who’ve eaten here end up staying for an hour. We don’t have servers, we bring the food to you and we bus the tables. You don’t have to pay extra, we want people to feel comfortable eating here.”

He also knows how to take care of his extended family when they ask for something special, he states, “We treat our customers like family too. A customer came in the other day and asked for tabouli without salt. I made a fresh batch, just for her, without salt. Another customer couldn’t have bread to go with her hummus. I cut carrots and cucumbers. It’s the little things like that.”

His family attitude reaches his employees as well. He states, “ I hired a gal and told her, this is a family environment you work with us, you work well and we’ll work very well with you. Here you’re proud to work hard. I was brought up that way.”

The appetizers include hummus and baba ghannouj, grilled vegetables and vegetarian grape leaves. There are a variety of salads from a fattoush salad to a jaffa salad, which is a mix of baked sesame seeds, cucumbers, tomatoes, red onions, bell peppers with a lemon-based dressing. The entrees range from chicken or beef shawarma, kebobs to a falafel plate. “We make it the original way and use fava beans in addition to chick peas. We slice the steak in the beef shawarma. Marinate it overnight and put it on the skewer piece by piece.” The curry potato soup he uses to flavor the rice, surprised the family when it sold out. Yasir says, “It flew off the shelves. People started eating it as soup. I had two people come in today for it and I had to tell them we were out, we’re going to make some more.” He continues, “We make genuine beef kufta . It’s put on a skewer and then grilled. The meat is hot and dripping with juices. It’s incredible.”

Ron also works for the U of M School of Education in World Languages as a lecturer; he works with pre-student and student teachers. He serves as the ritual assistant at Beth Israel Congregation, working with families to prepare students for their Bar/Bat Mitzvah. Still, Ron finds time to volunteer, “In my spare time, I work with a local youth group,” he adds. Last January, Ron had two small strokes. He says, “One of the first things I thought about was if I would be able to return to my creative passion.” After a few months, he was able to continue sketching designs and worked his way back into his glass. His glass continued to be his creative outlet, and was his therapy as well. He’s recovered and he’s back in his studio full time. Or as near to full time as Ron can manage with all his other commitments.

Yoshi’s
Yasir Kaskorkis
241 E. Liberty
Ann Arbor, MI
Phone: 313.702.3116
Email: info@eatatyoshis.com
Website: www.eatatyoshis.com
**High school or college students always received a 10 percent discount. Delivery within a five-mile radius begins in the fall.**